The Love Lost On A Stingers End
by A Pen A Flame A Friend
Summary: Cato/Clove with some Glimmer/Marvel Ill continue it If i get good feedback. As its my first Id really like to know how I did. Cloves P.O.V.
1. Chapter 1

I lay awake staring at the artificial starlight above me. I hear crickets and frogs at some stream not far off. I look up at were the girl from 12 is treed and I see her struggling up the tree towards were a sponsor parachute had landed. I consider waking the others and knocking her right out of that tree, decide against it. No matter what is in that parachute there is no way in hell that she will be able to take down 5 careers. I recheck my knives and grip the one in my hand tighter. After about half an hour my eyelids begin to droop and knowing I need my energy for tomorrow I decide not to fight it and let sleep claim me.

I awake to screams. Agonized screams. I jolt up knife in hand and take in the scene around me, The shattered remnants of some sort of hive lay on the ground and everywhere you looked angry swarms of wasp like creatures fly about, their buzzing grown to a roar. Hundreds of them covered the screaming form of Glimmer on the ground. I feel an excruciating sting on my hand and I curse, drop my knife, and run off into the first following Marvel and Cato back towards our camp, crashing through the bushes and making a lot of noise. I pass the feebly twitching body of the girl from district 4 whose name I hadn't yet bothered to learn and kept running. As we stumbled toward the camp we had set up by the cornucopia two cannons sounded and my vision blurred and I crashed to the ground. Cato falls beside me and pulls himself up to a sitting position, his face pinched and drawn. I wretch and curl up into a little ball next to him. My body feels like its on fire, venom courses through my veins and I begin to be wracked by painful spasms. I can hear Marvel howling in pain, grief, and anguish from inside the tent. Blearily I remember that he and Glimmer had been close. Then my vision blacks and I know no more.

I awake to the feeling of rain on my face. I realize my clothes are soaked and yet I am alarmingly warm. I twist around and see that Cato had crawled over to me when I blacked out and cradled me in his arms. He must then have passed out himself. I grabbed the stinger in my hand and pulled it out and threw it away. I then busied myself with pulling the multitude of stingers out of Cato now that he wasn't conscious. Each sting left a large discolored welt where we had been stung. I can't imagine what Glimmers body must look like now, she had literally hundreds of the wasps on her. It then occurred to me that I should probably check if Marvel was alive or not. Disentangling myself from Cato, I tiptoed over to the tent.


	2. Chapter 2

I listened at the tent flap for any sort of noise that would indicate a living, breathing Marvel. I can hear quiet whimpers and I take that as good an indication to come in as any. I crouch down and fumble with frozen hands for the zipper, Christ I didn't realize how cold it was. Big raindrop are splattering against the tent and covering me in droplets.

I finally manage to find the zipper and pull it up enough so that I could slip through. At first the tent is pitch black and I can't see or hear anything. "Marvel?" I call out tentatively. After about a minute of no response but the sound of raindrops splattering on the outside of the tent I try again. 'Marvel?" I call a bit louder. When there is still no response to my calls I take a step forward. And trip right over something. I land with a crash and a stream of curses. Then all hell breaks loose when the thing I landed on turns out to be Marvel himself. Yelling and flailing his arms he sends me rolling to the other corner of the tent. I hear a click and suddenly the tent is flooded with harsh bright light. I looked up to see Marvel standing over me with a small hand axe in one hand and an electric lantern in the other. I looked up at his face in the harsh white light of that lantern and saw in his eyes only broken grief and harsh anger, they were void of any recognition or perhaps beyond caring.

"Marvel!" I finally gasped out and his eyes finally showed a flicker of recognition. He lowered the axe and let it slip from his grasp to the floor. He set the lantern between us and sank down into a sitting position on a sleeping bag.

"What do you want Clove?" he asked tiredly. His face looked tired and his eyes hard stark dark rings around them, red and puffy from crying. That cocky smile he usually wore looked a million miles away, replaced by chapped bitten, lips and cheeks covered in dirt except for where tear tracks showed clearly. "I was just coming to check-"

"If I was still breathing? Why Clove, I didn't know you cared." He replied snarkily. "I am, so much the pity. The same cant be said for Glimmer can it?" At this his voice broke and I saw fresh tears begin to brim in his eyes. Part of me wanted to mock him for how weak he was being, wanted to punch him in the nose and call him a disgrace. The other part of me wanted to go across the tent and comfort him. I did neither of these things and instead said "She was close to you wasn't she?"

" I don't know if _close _is the right word. I don't even know if she knew I existed until the reaping. It started in Primary School. I was 7 and she was 8. She lent me her pink crayon when mine broke. She smiled, and damn if my little heart didn't break right then and there. After that I watched her everyday just trying to see that smile again. That went on until the reaping. She volunteered and I couldn't stop myself. I couldn't let some brute kill her off without her knowing at least once how I had felt all these years. So I stood up and volunteered as well. I had hoped that I could somehow make her remember me. She didn't, even when I showed her this."

He pulled out a tiny wooden box, his district token, and opened it. There, nestled on a piece of expensive fabric, was half a sparkly pink crayon. I blinked and stared at him in slack jawed incredulity. Had this bozo really kept a bit of a crayon for 10 years?

"I showed it to her last night when we were all camped under that tree waiting for 12. She just laughed and said Oh I didn't know you were one of that persuasion Marvel dear. She didn't remember and now she's dead along with the dream I had for most of my life." He then broke down again and began to sob uncontrollably and in utter despair. I got up and awkwardly patted him on the shoulder before exiting the tent.

I found Cato lounging in front of the tent, he had clearly been listening, I beckoned for him to follow me a bit away from the tent so Marvel wouldn't hear us.

"So." I said as I sat next to Cato on a patch of grass about 10 feet from the tent. "So." He said as he sat beside me. Cato snorted. " I cant believe he kept a bit of crayon for 10 years." I looked at him and said" I cant believe he liked Glimmer, she was a huge bitch!" And yet, something about what Marvel had said resonated with me. It made me think about Cato and I and our relationship. Or rather lack thereof. Could we, if either of us harbored secret feelings for one another, afford not to tell? Or would it be better to die like Glimmer, blissfully unaware that you would be leaving behind someone hurting so badly. "Cato." I said at the same time he said my name. We looked up startled and then without saying anything we knew." Suddenly, before I could really even register why, our lips met. Sparks lit up my brain and I slid a hand behind his perfect blond head and deepened the kiss. We moved together like that, just enjoying the feeling, saying with looks and caressed what words never could hope to. This was quite possibly the best moment of my life. Which is rather absurd considering we were currently in a death arena were only one of us would get out. But perhaps that's what made it so much better and exciting. That is until the sound of something sharp and heavy hitting the ground broke us apart. We recoiled from our position and looked up into the startled wide eyes of the boy from district 3 that had dropped his weapon in surprise when he had seen us.

Shit.


	3. Chapter 3

I moved first, a knife in hand and thrown before he could even get a word out. He just managed to dodge it by throwing himself to the ground and by then Cato was on top of him, fist raised.

The terrified buy threw his hands up and started pleading. "Wait, wait don't kill me I can help you!" Cato paused and looked up at me, seeking confirmation. I walked and crouched down next to them and stabbed my knife into the ground inches from his neck. " So little boy." I purred, "how exactly is it you can help us?" He looked absolutely terrified as he squeaked out " I can rearrange the mines around the pedestals to protect your stuff!" I blinked in surprise. In all the games I had ever seen, no one had ever done anything with the pedestal mines. " How are you so sure you can do that?"

"I worked in District 3 where the explosives are made, I never had a single accident in the munitions factories. I'm sure I could do it if you gave me a chance!" I note the pride he couldn't help from creeping into his voice. On one hand we could kill him now and have one less tribute to worry about. On the other, it certainly would be nice to have a bit more security around camp, especially if this security could potentially rid us of some more unobservant tributes.

"What do you think?" I asked Cato from his perch atop the boy. He shrugged. "I say let him try, if he cant we can always kill him later, and he'll probably just blow himself up anyways." I nod and Cato gets up off the scrawny boy and drags him roughly to his feet. I notice the rain had stopped since we had found the boy. Good, no need to get needlessly wet then.

"Well get working!" said Cato as he shoved the boy towards the pedestals. The boy scampered off, paused to collect a shovel from the supplies pile we had stacked beside the tent and headed towards the pedestals. I let out a quiet sigh of relief, though the adrenaline that still buzzed through my body demanded I take action. I decided to go practice throwing knives and tasked Cato with informing Marvel of our new "alliance."

I pulled out a target from the supplies pile and walked over and hung it on the shiny metal surface of the Cornucopia. I took a few steps back and faced my target, legs staggered and hands at my sides. I take a breath and do the calculations in my mind. One spins equals three knife lengths. I take my hand and take up a knife, holding the blade in a pinch grip. I draw my arm back and cock my wrist. Then I whip my arm down, flicking my wrist and releasing the knife somewhere around my ear. It flies true, making a sound like an angry wasp and flying into the bulls-eye of the target blade first with a satisfying "Thunk." I end up throwing knives for about an hour, dimly wondering if my accuracy is pleasing the sponsors.

I stop when I feel someone starring at me and I look up to see the boy from District 3 starring at me from his hole in the dirt. I make a face and toss a knife into the dirt inches from his hand just to get the message across. He pulls back his hand like its been burned and trips back down into his little pit. I smirk with satisfaction and amusement and retrieve my knives from the target and the dirt, making sure to kick a generous amount of it onto District 3 as I do so.

I walk over to a nice moonlit patch of long grass over by the nearby lake and flopped down on the ground. I sigh contentedly as I know nothing at this moment can harm me. We have superior skill, gear and supplies. My mind rolls back to the events of the day. We had woken up under attack, lost Glimmer and passed out in camp. We woke at night to the sadness and fear of a lost comrade. And. Somewhere in the last 24 hours I had realized I had feelings for Cato and he apparently reciprocated them. Enthusiastically. I try to quell the cold feeling that begins to wash over me at the thought that for a certainty only one of us would be walking out of this arena alive. No way in hell were we going to play the sappy star-crossed lovers angle.

As I lay there in the long dewy grass staring at the moon, the silvery unnatural light lit up the dewdrops like a thousand stars. My pale skin seemed to glow in the light and a growing feeling of despair roots me. All previous thoughts of my "immortality" gone and I am left feeling vulnerable despite myself and I start trembling, though whether from fear or cold I cannot say. The reality of how little time I realistically have left jabs at my heart like an icy sword. Even if we manage to kill the remaining tributes and then turn on Marvel, it will just be Cato and I left. New feelings aside, I don't know with any certainty that I can kill him. He is bigger and stronger than I am; I've seen him shrug off blows that would kill any normal person. If anyone had ever before in my life doubt my skills or my ability to kill, it was Cato. And perhaps that was the attraction. The first obstacle in my life I hadn't been able to overcome. Even as the games progressed I had found myself leaning and relying on him more and more. Unbidden, a tear rolls down my cheek, the unnatural moonlight making it sparkle like a diamond. More tears slide down my face in little silver rivers and I begin shaking again. Never before had I felt so mortal. I want to live out my life to an old age, look back on the years and have no regrets. Instead I'm stuck in an arena full of people who want me dead, not likely to live much more than a few more weeks.

"Just a piece in their games." I mumble to myself leadenly. I cover my face with my hands and continue to cry silently, my legs drawn up to my chest, not willing to let the Capitol see anymore of my moment of weakness.

I hear a rustle in the long grass behind me and I whirl around. I find myself looking up into the concerned face of Cato. The moonlight makes his golden blond hair almost silvery and his bright blue eyes stand out like sapphires. I don't think he's ever looked more beautiful than he does right now. He notices the shimmering, blinding tears brimming in my own golden brown eyes and his brow crinkles with concern. He takes a tentative step forward. "Clove, What's wrong?" I stare at him for a moment and then I feel the tears start to flow hot and fast down my face again. He strides forward and wraps me in his strong arms. We sink to the ground and I sit on his lap, his arms still wrapped around me as I begin to cry like a little baby. Long broken wails burst from my body and I bury my face in his chest. He begins stroking my hair softly and rocking me back and forth. He smells like home, of wood smoke and masonry rock dust. He radiates warmth and strength. I feel small and oddly safe. I'm in the arms of the person who likely will be my killer and yet, I feel comforted and safe and warm. My sobbing slows to little hiccupped gasps and I wipe my face on his shirt and sit back a little. He looks down into my eyes and whispers softly, "Better?" I just nod and press closer to him again. He continues to stroke my hair. I reach up and touch his face and for the first time I realize he must have been crying a little too. A fine sight we must have made, the three remaining careers bawling their eyes out in one night. He bends down and kisses the top of my head. "I think…I think I know why you were crying Clove. You want to live; you don't want to just be another forgettable face in the sky. Neither do I. I don't want to kill you clove. That is the very last thing I want in this world right now."

He leans in closer and lets his lips brush my ear so only I can hear, not even the capitol. "I swear." He breathes, "that if there is a way to get us both out of here, I will find it, I swear that we will both walk away from this. I swear that we will both go home or not at all, this I promise you.

Then he kisses my ear.


	4. Chapter 4

Cato and I lay there entwined in each other's arms, the moonlight illuminating our tear stained faces as we gazed at the ever shifting stars. I dimly wondered how many over sensitive Capitol citizens were currently sobbing into their handkerchiefs. A small breeze stirred our hair and buried my head in the crook of Cato's shoulder and cursed the artistry of the Game makers. He took one of my hands and brought it up to his lips and gently kissed it.

"We should probably head back to the tent to sleep" He mumbled softly

"And be in the same tent as Marvel McCrankypants? No thanks."

"It's a good deal safer Clove."

"Ive got you."

"Clove." He said more sternly

I sighed and extracted myself from him and collected my gear from where I had tossed it. I buckled on my knife belt and turned to face Cato again. He had gotten up from where he had been sitting and I noticed he hadn't bothered to bring any weapons with him. Being the resident badass has its perks. We parted the grass and headed back towards the tent. The light of Marvels lantern illuminated it and cast silhouettes of the things inside. We opened the tent and walked inside. Cato strode over to where he had neatly piled his gear and sorted his things into various bags. In the absence of his body heat I to realized I was quite wet from all the dew. And then I realized I was wearing white. And that Marvel and District 3 were staring at me.

"Out you perverts!" I screeched and began flinging knives in their general direction, though I was careful not to actually hit anyone. Needless to say they scattered fast, leaving me with a very red face and a very bemused Cato.

"why didn't you warn me?"

"I just assumed you knew!" he laughed

I pulled a face at him and then we both changed facing away from each other.

5 minutes later Marvel and District 3 came back wearing matching grins.

I let marvel passed me but I stopped the other boy.

"Did we say you could sleep with us?"

"Well no but I just sort of assumed…"

"Get out."

"But."

"Out!"

He left hastily.

"What was that about Clove?" asked Marvel with a slight frown on his face."

"I don't now about you Marvel, but I don't particularly want to have my throat slit in the middle of the night, unless you have something to say about that?" I sneered nastily, in a bad mood. He opened his mouth as though to say something but then closed it and shook his head.

"Good."

Cato looked at me with a neutral face but I saw amusement in his eyes. I pulled a face at him. We then held a council to decide what the plan would be for the next few days.

We decided that we would form two squads, one to hunt for tributes, the other to guard the camp and our considerable amount of supplies. Cato and I volunteered for the tribute hunting squad, as we were honestly the most deadly, while marvel and 3 were picked for guard duty.

"After all, said Marvel, I don't want to step on a mine and he's the only one who knows where he buried the damn things."

A few hours later we decided to turn in. Sleeping mats were rolled out, mine in between Marvel and Cato. Between both of these strong trained killers I felt obscenely safe. I looked over at Cato were he lay facing away from me and let my eyes wander over him. Even just wearing a loose t-shirt and athletic pants as he was, he looked nice. His toned muscles stood out even in his relaxed state and I felt my gaze soften and my heart beat a little quicker. Turning to my other side, my face reddening, I see Marvel. He is awkward and adorable and yet strong and lithe in his own way and handy in a fight with that spear of his. I notice he is already asleep and starting to drool. I let out a small sigh and stare up at the roof of the tent. It occurs to me that now would be a good time to finish off Marvel, As much as I hate to admit it I'm rather fond of him and the thought of killing him when he is awake and talking makes me uncomfortable. I rest my hand on one of my knives I had placed on the ground beside me. I look over at Marvel again and frown. Damnit, even I cant kill something that helpless and adorable looking. Congratulations Clove you picked a really fucking good time to start going soft. I draw my hand away from my knives and try to close my eyes and sleep.

I awake to the brilliant sunshine streaming through the tent flap and the intoxicating smell of cooking bacon. I crinkle up my face and my stomach chooses that moment to let out a sound like a dying whale, alerting everyone and me to how hungry I am. Five minutes later I join Cato and Marvel for the bacon they found in our supplies. 3 is forced to eat trail rations. After we eat and go over our plan for the last time, this time actually telling 3 what we expect him to do. After briefing, Cato and I gather up our weapons and some supplies. We both load backpacks loaded down with supplies on our backs and I buckle on two knife belts and tuck some into my boots as well. Cato buckles on a wicked looking sword onto his belt and I notice he also has a larger one strapped to his back. As we get ready to leave I hear Marvel say "Yah here that buddy its just you and me?" to district Three and give him a large exaggerated wink. Sometimes I wonder if Glimmer wasn't wrong about him.

I look back at Cato and he gives me that big cocky grin I love so much.

"Well, Shall we?"

"Lets go."

And off we went.


	5. Chapter 5

Ten minutes later, Cato and I stalked through the forest as silently as possible, our training kicking in subconsciously. We paused at every bush that rustled or twig that snapped, listening for any sound that would indicate a tribute either trying to hide or ambush us. Which would be a futile effort regardless.

Sunlight filtered in through the thick canopy of leaves overhead, breaking the forest floor into pools of light or deep shadows. Another bush in front of us rustled and we froze, weapons ready to pounce on whatever it was. After about 30 seconds of continued rustling and nothing emerging I decided enough was enough. I threw a knife. There was a loud squawk and an explosion of feathers as a terrified bird burst from the bushes, its cries echoing in the otherwise still forest. It flew right at my head and I ducked, momentarily panicked. Cato laughed at me as I went to retrieve my knife. I shoved it back into my belt and turned around to glare at him.

"What! It was a perfectly logical concern, didn't you see that video of the games where that girl got her throat cut by those colorful looking birds?"

He chuckled again "That's a Mockingjay, Clove, they don't hurt anything, they also echo peoples voices. That terrified squawking sound it made? It was copying you!"

I continued to glare at him.

"I think the Gamemakers are fucking with us."

"You think? They are probably laughing at us, wouldn't be surprised if we came upon some mating dear or something." He scoffed.

I started to laugh and soon we were laughing uncontrollably, tears rolling down our cheeks. Immature perhaps, but in the games you take whatever humor you can get; it might be your last.

We set out again after collecting ourselves. I reveled in the sense of closeness Cato and I had seemingly developed in the last few days, which was strange for me as I had very few friends back home. Amazing how killing people brings you together.

Looking at him, his sun kissed skin and blond hair, those eyes that flashed with alert, almost predatory, intelligence. All mine, though perhaps in truth I am his. Though the question is. Am I his love or his kill? I wonder what he sees in me, though I'm certainly decent enough looking I'm no Glimmer. Had he then been attracted to my skill? Certainly that is something that distinguished me from Glimmer, That hapless airhead could barely fire that bow that was supposedly her "Weapon of Choice". I sneered inwardly. Glimmer had been a useless excuse for a career and she had paid the price in blood. What did that make me to Cato? A pretty emotionless tool? A killing machine? These things I could certainly be, and yet…he had seen me at my weakest, had cradled my fragile crying form in his arms, Had kissed my lips and brushed away my tears and doubts. His words came back to me…

"You want to live; you don't want to just be another forgettable face in the sky. Neither do I. I don't want to kill you clove. That is the very last thing I want in this world right now. I swear, that if there is a way to get us both out of here, I will find it, I swear that we will both walk away from this. I swear that we will both go home or not at all, this I promise you."…

Perhaps I mean more to him then I give myself credit for.

Cato's next words jar me abruptly from my convoluted thoughts.

"Clove heads up, I think there's someone up ahead."

My hands fly instantly to my knives and we crouch down once more, silent, waiting, and deadly. Seconds tick by like minutes. Finally with a shout two people come crashing toward us from the depths of a thicket they had been hiding in. Cato lunged forward, sword leading, catching the other boys weapon with his in a mighty crash of steel. I faced the other boy and threw two knives in quick succession. Surprisingly he managed to deflect one of them with his scythe like sword, the other however thudded into his shoulder. He let out a cry and crashed to the ground, already staining the ground with a river of crimson. I let out a savage sounding cry and leapt atop of the downed boy and stared into his white fear filled eyes. Then I dragged my knife across his throat. Red squirted spastically from the new smile Id given him.. I drew back quickly and turned to help Cato. Silly me. I found him sitting on the boy's now armless body. You have to admire his handiwork. Two cannons boomed out as they expired.

"Well that was easy."

"No kidding."

Adrenaline pumped through my body and Cato and I must have appeared to be crazy war gods or something. The way he stood Gloating above his kill, covered in blood, none of it his, could practically have inspired worship.

"Lets get going, no sense in staying here till the hovercrafts come to take the bodies away."

I nodded and bent to retrieve my knife from the now dead boys shoulder.

Wiping our weapons on their clothes we picked a direction at random and walked off away from the carnage we had sewn, aware but not caring that we had likely broken the hearts of hundreds.


End file.
